From Paris to Dakar: Launch of the Internet Health Report in French
By Solana Larsen | July 1, 2019
On Saturday, our friends at the digital rights organization Internet without Borders hosted an event in Dakar, Senegal in collaboration with the Network of Bloggers of Senegal to mark the release of the 2019 Internet Health Report in French. It took place at the School of Librarians, Archivists and Documentarians (EBAD) at the University of Cheikh Anta Diop of Dakar.
This was the second of a series of gatherings hosted by Internet without Borders that began with a small gathering in Mozilla’s Paris Office on June 6, 2019 to discuss the report’s key messages with journalists and allies.
A video recording of the presentation from the Paris event was played back for participants at the event in Dakar, which was attended by a number of journalists, representatives of Senegal’s National Personal Data Commission, as well as representatives of a women’s rights association.
Julie Owono, the executive director of Internet without Borders and Solana Larsen, the editor of the Internet Health Report joined the meeting over Skype to answer questions and hear feedback. Emmanuel DIOKH of Internet without Borders was interviewed on video by Socialinetlink.org.
Africa is acutely in need of a healthier internet. It is the region of the world where download speeds are the slowest and where the cost of connectivity is the least affordable. It’s where where social media is taxed in several countries, where women connect at far lower rates than men, and where internet censorship and shutdowns are increasing in number and severity.
In this context, the Internet Health Report with its global outlook on the internet ecosystem, can be a great conversation starter about the systemic problems we all face worldwide, as well as about the opportunities for local solutions that exist in individual countries and regions. Owono and Larsen expand on these ideas in a forthcoming op-ed in Jeune Afrique magazine.
If you would like to know more about how to host an event inspired by research and ideas featured in the Internet Health Report – or if you have already held an event and wish to tell us more, please do get in touch ([email protected]).